Saturday, October 3, 2015

Some 15mm Napoleonic action ...

No plan withstands first contact with the enemy, well no wargames plan withstands first contact with the cold virus. The planned ACW Volley and Bayonet game with Keith had to be postponed because of one of those nasty viruses, so Adrian and I adjourned to the dining room table for some early Napoleonic fun.

Adrian had taken a late 18th Century Austrian vs French battle and scaled things down a little to give us a game playable on a 6' x 4' surface. The French were in defence, with the Austrians attacking. However historically the Austrian plan wasn't well coordinated so their forces arrived piecemeal, replicated with a die roll for arrival on the table. However, when 'tin bum Sutton' has his day (which happens VERY rarely), he really has his day, and the entire Austrian army arrived within the first three turns of the game.

Initial deployment seen from behind the Austrian position, with the first two divisions (infantry, and cavalry) having entered the table.

French defenders

Austrian advance - at this stage the Austrian army is modelled on linear bases

The Austrian centre advanced to engage the French defenders

The overall plan was for the Austrian right to simply engage and hold, while the centre and left coordinated an attack.

The Austrian right having advanced and engaged with the French left

Adrian shifted his left wing reserve (two brigades) to advance around the Austrian extreme right

Austrian dragoons entered the battlefield on the Austrian left wing to threaten the French right.

The Austrian left wing division advanced and routed the French right wind division

The Austrian right was holding, but taking casualties

Adrian shifted his cavalry reserve to prop up his empty right. I chose to hold now with my left. The linear infantry were too vulnerable to cavalry charge. They were protected by the Austrian dragoons, seen here top centre

The game was about attack, and so the Austrian Grenadier division (converged grenadiers from the line brigades .. M6, Shock in VnB terms) were thrown in to the attack. The attack didn't end well, and the Grenadier division was 'exhausted'

The Austrian right wing had held but was exhausted and reduced to two regiments.

The game ended with Adrian poised to try to sweep around the Austrian right. However both armies were teetering on the brink of complete exhaustion.

This was a finely balanced game. Had the Austrian arrival been more staggered (as historically it was) then the French would have been in a better position to go over to the attack, as they did historically. Nonetheless an excellent outing on the table with some beautifully painted 15mm miniatures.

About Me

Public admission time: it was back in the late '60s that I began 'gaming along with a great group of friends. I game a wide range of periods, but my all time favourite rules set is 'Volley and Bayonet' by Frank Chadwick. I am also a great fan of the Spearhead stable of rules, especially Great War Spearhead written by Shawn Taylor. Most recently I have become a convert to HotT (Hordes of the Things, the fantasy variant of DBA). I also play DBA and Armati, with a smattering of the GW rules.